1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to children""s garments and, more particularly, to so-called infant sleepers.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Infant sleepers are well known and typically comprise a garment body having a pair of arm portions and a pair of leg portions for covering the child""s body, arms and legs in a loosely fitting manner. The distal ends of the leg portions of known sleepers are usually provided with integral foot portions. Up to now the foot portion of conventional sleepers have been made from several pieces of fabric sewn together to form the approximate shape of the child""s foot.
A major problem with such conventional footed sleepers is that in use, as when a baby is lying down and curled up in the fetal position or even when a baby is learning to crawl, the baby""s feet do not stay within the xe2x80x9cfootxe2x80x9d area of the sleeper. This leads to discomfort for the baby. Furthermore, the baby""s feet will not stay as warm as when the feet are properly encased inside the foot portions of the sleeper.
Another drawback of conventional footed sleepers is that the children cannot wear a shoe or boot comfortably with a sleeper on, thereby limiting the functionality of the garment to xe2x80x9csleepwearxe2x80x9d.
There is, thus, a need for a new sleeper foot construction which will overcome the above-mentioned drawbacks.
It is therefore an aim of the present invention to provide a footed sleeper adapted to prevent the child""s feet from moving out of the foot portion of the sleeper and becoming drawn into or trapped in the leg portions of the sleeper.
It is also an aim of the present invention to provide a sleeper with an integral sock foot sewn directly to the sleeper instead of a traditional fabric constructed sock.
Therefore, in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a footed sleeper for a young child, comprising a garment body including a pair of leg portions adapted to loosely surround the child""s legs, and a pair of form fitting knitted, stretchable socks attached by a seam to respective distal ends of said leg portions and being sized and shaped to cover the child""s feet in a snug fit manner so as to prevent the child""s feet from moving out of the socks and becoming drawn into in the leg portions of the footed sleeper.
In accordance with a further general aspect of the present invention, there is provided a footed sleeper for a young child, comprising a garment body made of a first fabric material to loosely cover the child""s body, arms and legs, and a pair of socks made of a different material than that of said garment body, said socks being permanently attached to said garment body and being stretchable to provide a snug fit of the socks to the child""s feet, thereby ensuring that said socks stay on the child""s feet.
In accordance with a still further general aspect of the present invention, there is provided a footed sleeper for a young child, comprising a garment body having a pair of leg portions adapted to surround the child""s legs in a loose fit manner, and a pair of stretchable socks permanently connected to said leg portions to provide a snug fit of the socks to the feet of the child.
This sock foot advantageously replaces the traditional foot, which is constructed out of several pieces of fabric and sewn together to form the approximate shape of the child""s foot.